Beauty and the Beast
by Danja
Summary: Naomi Wildman gives Seven of Nine a Pixxim present. R&R.
1. Pixxim

**Beauty and the Beast**

* * *

Onboard Voyager, it was the Talaxian festival of Pixxim.

The Wildmans' quarters were brightly decorated for the event. It was one of the few times of the year that the crew could relax slightly.

Naomi Wildman was standing in the living room, holding a tablet computer.

"Computer," said Naomi Wildman to the replicator. "I would like a book."

* * *

"Excuse me," said Naomi to The Doctor. The Doctor sat at his desk in sickbay, scrolling through medical records on a tablet computer.

He turned his chair around to find Naomi Wildman standing next to him, carrying the book and a red envelope.

"Naomi Wildman!" The Doctor exclaimed happily. "How are you today?"

"Do you know where I can find Seven of Nine's quarters?" Naomi asked.

"She doesn't have quarters _per se_," the Doctor replied. "Her regeneration unit is located in Storage Bay Three. Why do you ask?"

"I would like to give her something," Naomi replied as she showed The Doctor the book and the envelope. "It's a Pixxim present."

"I doubt she's there. She's probably working," said The Doctor. "It would be best to leave it next to her unit."

* * *

Later that day, Seven of Nine returned to her regeneration unit in Storage Bay Three to find a book and a red envelope next lying next to her unit.

Seven picked up the book and the envelope. _What is this?_ she wondered.

She felt the weight of the envelope. _There's something inside,_ she thought. She tore open the envelope and pulled out the card that was inside.

The computer-generated card read:

HAPPY PIXXIM!

NAOMI WILDMAN

_That was thoughtful of her, _Seven thought as she examined the book. The cover read, "Beauty and the Beast".

She leaned against a nearby storage crate and thumbed through the book.

* * *

Ensign Samantha Wildman sat on the sofa in her quarters, doing some calculations on a tablet computer.

All at once, there was a knock on the door.

Ensign Wildman walked over to the door and asked, "Who is it?"

"Seven of Nine," came the reply from the other side. "May I come in?"

"Oh ... _Yes!_ Of course!" Ensign Wildman sputtered nervously. "It's open!"

The door opened. "I have to get used to knocking on doors," said Seven as she entered the Wildmans' quarters. She carried the book and the card that Naomi had given her.

"Why?" Ensign Wildman asked.

"I was trained to break them down," Seven replied matter-of-factly.

A chill ran down Ensign Wildman's spine.

"How are you?" Ensign Wildman blubbered in an attempt to regain her composure.

"Is Naomi here?" Seven asked.

"What do you want with her?" Ensign Wildman barked defensively.

"I wanted to thank her for the book and the card," Seven replied calmly, showing Ensign Wildman the book and the card.

"Where did you get those?" Ensign Wildman snapped.

"I found them next to my regeneration unit," Seven replied. _ Why is she behaving in this manner?_ she wondered. "I am assuming she gave them to me for Pixxim."

"I'm terribly sorry ..." Ensign Wildman stammered.

"Why are you apologizing?" Seven asked quizzically. "She gave me a Pixxim gift." She then asked, "May I see Naomi?"

"Oh, yes ... Of course!" Ensign Wildman exclaimed. She went to a rear hallway and called out, "_NAOMI! THERE'S SOMEONE HERE TO SEE YOU!_"

_Of all the people on this ship my daughter could choose as friends, she picks a known_ KILLER! Ensign Wildman thought.

Naomi Wildman came out of her bedroom. "Hello, Seven," she said upon seeing Seven of Nine.

"Naomi," Seven replied. "I wanted to thank you for the book and the card."

"You're welcome," Naomi replied.

The three of them stared at each other in awkward silence for the longest time.

"I should go," said Seven, breaking the silence. "I need to get back to my unit."

"It was good to see you!" Ensign Wildman said nervously as Seven backed away towards the door.

"I'll see you later," said Seven as she walked out the door.

"Why give a present to _HER_, of all people?" Ensign Wildman asked Naomi after Seven had left.

"I don't understand," Naomi replied.

"You DO know who she _IS_, don't you?" Ensign Wildman snapped. "Have you any idea what she's_ DONE?_"

"Aren't you always telling me to reach out to the lonely at Pixxim?" Naomi asked. "She's lonely. She needed it."

Ensign Wildman let out a breath, stung by her own words.

"Mommy?" Naomi asked. "Is everything all right?"

"Go back to your room," said Ensign Wildman. "It's late."

"Did I do something wrong?"

"Everything's fine," said Ensign Wildman, shaking her head in bewilderment. "Just ... go back to your room."


	2. Show and Tell

**Chapter Two**

* * *

"What's it like being Borg?" Naomi asked. She was in the mess hall, sitting at Seven of Nine's feet.

"I'm assuming you mean ... what was I like before I came to Voyager," Seven replied. She was sitting at a table, reading a technical manual on a tablet computer. "When I was still joined to the Collective."

"Yes."

Seven sighed and said, "It's not something that I enjoy talking about." Seven paused. "If I ... were to turn you into a Borg ... you, Naomi Wildman, would cease to exist. You would cease to exist as an individual.

"You would be issued a number. My full Borg designation is Seven of Nine, Tertiary Adjunct of Unimatrix Zero One."

"Would I be strong like you?"

"My strength ... comes at a price," Seven replied. "I had no free will. I was not free to come and go as I pleased. I was a living weapon, at the service of the Borg Queen.

"I was a slave. I had no thoughts of my own. I went ... wherever the Borg Queen sent me. My mission ... was to turn people into Borg drones ... like I was."

"Were you born a Borg?"

"No," said Seven. "I was born human ... on the Tendara Colony." Seven struggled to find the words. "My name ... before I became Borg ... was Annika Hansen.

"I was ... turned into a Borg ... when I was a girl. About your age."

"How did you do it?" Naomi asked.

"How did I do what?"

"Turn people ... into Borgs."

Seven froze. "I don't know how to answer that question," she replied. After a brief silence, she pulled her assimilation syringe out of her cybernetic hand.

"This ... " said Seven as she showed the syringe to Naomi. "...Usually went into someone's shoulder." She let go of the syringe and it retracted back into place.

"Could you still do it ... if you wanted to?"

"I no longer want to," Seven replied. "What would be the point? I'm no longer joined to the Collective.

"I'm grateful to Captain Janeway ... for showing me another way to live," Seven continued. "She has yet to give up on me." _Even though I've given her plenty of reasons to do so,_ Seven thought.

Seven got up from the table. "You have school," she told Naomi. "And I have to get back to work." She then walked out the door.

THE END


End file.
